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Pencil Racer Walkthrough

Pencil Racer is the sort of BMX game that really allows you to let your imagination run wild. You start with a blank game screen with only your options panel at the bottom and build the track that you will race on. You even have a variety of vehicles or characters to choose from which make this game even more enjoyable. One of the most appealing things about this game is that its extremely user friendly. While it might take a little while to get the hang of building a good track, a little patience can go a long way. It's really just a matter of experimenting and figuring out what all of tools do and how you can use them. Once you have the hang of that, your track can be as easy or as basic as you want it to be. Unlike most of the other BMX games online, this one isn't all about getting from point A to point B as fast as you can. Instead, this one is about using your imagination to make that journey as interesting as possible.

To start out in Pencil Racer, you need to familiarize yourself with the tools you'll be using to create your track. Your tool palette is the left box in the options panel at the bottom of the screen under the 'track' tab and offers all manner of tools you can use to make your track more interesting. While there are many other 'build your own track' BMX games online, few of them offer the range of tools and tool options you get with this game. The first tool option you have is the pencil tool. This allows you to build free form lines just as if you were drawing on paper with a pencil. This one is great if you want curves or rounded hills although you need a pretty steady hand or a lot of patience is you want it to look good. You can also use this tool to draw background art. The second tool is the line tool. This tool allows you to draw straight lines continuously. Using this one can be a bit tricky to use because as soon as you finish drawing a line, a new one will begin. This can be irritating if you want to switch tools or start drawing a line on another part of the screen. For this, the next tool can come in handy - the eraser. That one is pretty self explanatory. You'll use it to erase lines.

Probably the greatest thing about Pencil Racer is that the fun doesn't end with simply drawing basic lines and sending your vehicle along the track. That's also what really separates this game from many of the other 'build your own track' BMX games online. There are many additional options that allow you to build a truly interesting track. For starters, you are able to adjust the 'stickiness' and 'acceleration' of your lines making for a more varied ride using the slider bars at the bottom of the panel. A 'sticky' line (marked with red arrows above the line) will slow your rider down while an 'acceleration' line (marked with green arrows below the line) will speed your rider up. Use this to your advantage when you're building your track. What's important to remember, though, is that it matters how you draw your line. If you draw your line from left to right the surface of the line will be on the top. If you draw from right to left, the surface will be on the bottom. That can allow you to do all sorts of neat things. Be creative. That's what this game is all about.

In addition to different line types, Pencil Racer also offers a variety of options for art. In addition to being able to change the background color of your game screen (using the color selector under the 'track' tab), you can also change the color of your lines and the thickness of your lines allowing you to draw your own background art. Your art options are found under the 'art' tab. You have most of the same tools here that you would find under the 'track' tab but instead of being able to adjust the acceleration or stickiness of your lines you're able to adjust the thickness of your line using the slider bar at the bottom. This gives you a little more creative range as opposed to games that only allow you to create your track with one line thickness or one line color. Any lines your draw with the tools under the art tab will be considered background art which means your rider will not try to ride on them. For that reason, it's important to make sure you're under the right tab when you're drawing. If you aren't though and you accidentally draw a line or two under the wrong tab, you can change the classification of your lines using the line editor tools.

The line editor tools are a great feature in Pencil Racer that most of the other 'build your own track' BMX games online don't offer. You have them on both the 'track' and 'art' tabs. The 'move tool' (the shaded arrow with the dotted square) allows you to select a line (or a group of lines) and move them to another part of the game screen. The 'point' tool (the white arrow pointing to a circle) allows you to select any line you've drawn and edit it. You can change the line type from 'art' to 'track' or the other way around, delete the line or change the thickness of the line in case of art lines or change the acceleration or stickiness of a line in the case of track lines. You're also able to change the color of the lines. All of this is very helpful if you've drawn a few lines of track under the wrong tab or have carefully created a line under the wrong tab. The edit tools eliminate the need to erase your lines which can definitely save you a lot of time.

Once you're satisfied with your track in Pencil Racer, you can take it for a ride. One of the most entertaining aspects of the game is the option to choose from a variety of different tracks. You can choose a mother duck and her babies, a warthog, a car, a monster truck, a tank, a tractor or a target. This is really where this game stands apart from many of the other 'build your own track' BMX games. First, there is no BMX bike to use, but that hardly matters. Second, you don't actually control your vehicle as it rides over the track. Instead, all of the control you get over the ride comes from how you build the track. Make it challenging and complicated. Add lots of hills and dips. Throw in a few ramps. Make good use of the stickiness and acceleration options and you can have a blast with this one. It might not be what you think of when you think BMX games, if fact, it's really more of a physics game, but it is a lot of fun and shouldn't be missed. The fact that it isn't just a typical BMX game is what makes it so appealing. You get to do something different but not abandon the genre you love completely. Build the most exciting track you can imagine and share it with your friends. If you're a fan of BMX games, physics games or drawing games, this is a game you absolutely can't pass up.